By John Keating
PARIS, Sept 7 (KUNA) -- France has warmly welcomed the attribution of a distinguished United Nations honour to His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah and to the State of Kuwait for their work done in the area of humanitarian affairs and development.
His Highness the Amir is named a "Global Humanitarian Leader" by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and in parallel Kuwait is designated as a "Global Humanitarian Centre" in recognition of the work done worldwide by the Kuwaiti nation and leadership, and of late the distinguished efforts of His Highness the Amir in convening international conferences to help the plight of war-weary Syrians and the millions of refugees created by that conflict.
A senior French official here also underlined the Kuwaiti role in supporting not only humanitarian and developmental goals worldwide, but also pointed to Kuwait's actions as a champion of culture in France and elsewhere.
"I would like to take the opportunity, offered by the awarding of this justified honour, to thank the Amir of Kuwait and the people of Kuwait for their partnership with France in international humanitarian and cultural actions," French Foreign Ministry Spokesman and Director of Communications Romain Nadal said in an exclusive interview.
The French official particularly drew attention to the important role played by Kuwait when it hosted two major conferences for humanitarian aid for Syria and raised pledges of USD 2.5 billion from participants.
This came on top of a long history of humanitarian and developmental work sponsored by Kuwait through regular operations in developing and poor countries, both Arab and non-Arab.
Specifically speaking of the honorific title being conferred on His Highness Sheikh Sabah, the French official highlighted his government's satisfaction that His Highness the Amir had been recognised for his work and Kuwait had been rewarded for its support for humanitarian actions.
"We welcome the announcement by the UN Secretary-General to award this honour to the Amir of Kuwait and to the Kuwaiti nation," Nadal told Kuwait News Agency (KUNA).
"This award illustrates the commitment of the Amir of Kuwait in favour of international humanitarian action, in particular for a certain number of countries in crisis, like Syria. It is an extremely important action, appreciated not only in the United Nations but by all the entire international community," the French official added.
"France is delighted by this award and especially by the action carried out by Kuwait which France supports and with which it has a very important partnership and political dialogue," Nadal also said.
The spokesman expressed satisfaction at being given a chance to send a message of gratitude to the State of Kuwait and His Highness the Amir, reflecting the long-standing cooperation between the two nations in a number of areas.
"The conferring of this award also permits France to thank the Amir of Kuwait and the Kuwaiti nation for the partnership we have with this country, notably in the framework of the Arab World Institute (IMA), and The Louvre Museum, in order to promote Arab and Islamic civilisation, to help make it better known and to undertake the restoration of a certain number of works that are under threat or have needed to be refurbished." His Highness the Amir has been a generous donor to both IMA and The Louvre, and helped finance the renovation of the IMA museum, as well as participating in the creation of an 8th Department in the world-famous Louvre Museum, dedicated exclusively to Islamic art. (end) jk.rk